Properly functioning tires are important to the safety of a moving vehicle. Because they are the only points at which a vehicle contacts the surface on which the vehicle is moving, one or more malfunctioning tires may have consequences on the performance and safety of the vehicle.
For instance, when a tire becomes punctured, a vehicle may not generally continue to move occupants in the same manner. Therefore, the vehicle typically is stopped and a new tire is fixed in place of the punctured one.
Tire monitoring systems are employed as early warning systems to detect problems with tires. For instance, one standard tire monitoring system monitors the pressure within the tire so that when the pressure is lower or higher than normal, the pressure may be adjusted prior to the tire failing (e.g., bursting, etc.).
However, conventional tire monitoring systems are prone to errors; for instance, a tire may be flagged as requiring attention when in fact it is the sensor that may be malfunctioning. In addition, conventional tire monitoring systems use simplified techniques to tailor a response of the vehicle to a particular condition. For example, conventional tire pressure monitoring systems, while useful, merely measure the pressure and may signal an alarm if the pressure is not within a predefined band.